Acuity Brands, Inc. announced unaudited consolidated earnings results for the first quarter ended November 30, 2012. For the fiscal 2013 first quarter net sales were $481.1 million, an increase of $6.8 million, or 1.4%, compared with the year-ago period. Operating profit for the first quarter of fiscal 2013 was $48.2 million, or 10.0% of net sales, compared with $50.6 million, or 10.7% of net sales, for the prior-year period. Excluding expenses associated with the closing of the Cochran facility as discussed below, adjusted operating profit for the first quarter of fiscal 2013 was $53.7 million, a 1% increase over the prior-year period's adjusted operating profit of $53.3 million. Income before provision for income taxes was $40.4 million against $45.8 million reported last year. Net income for the first quarter of fiscal 2013 was $26.1 million, or $0.61 diluted earnings per share compared with $29.9 million, or $0.70 diluted earnings per share for the year-ago period. Excluding special charges and related temporary expenses in both periods, fiscal 2013 first quarter adjusted net income was $29.6 million compared with adjusted net income of $31.6 million for the prior-year period. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2013 were $0.69 compared with adjusted diluted EPS of $0.74 for the year-ago period. Net cash used for operating activities was $14.5 million against net cash provided by operating activities of $27.7 million reported last year. Purchases of property, plant, and equipment were $11.2 million against $4.2 million reported last year. The year-over-year growth in fiscal 2013 first quarter Net Sales were due primarily to an increase in volume, partially offset by a slightly net unfavorable change in product prices and the mix of products sold. Fiscal 2013 first quarter results included $0.1 million of net miscellaneous expense compared with $2.9 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, of net miscellaneous income in the prior-year period.

The company expects that the closure of the Cochran facility will be principally completed by the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2013. Management forecasts that additional costs of approximately $4 million associated with the closing of the Cochran facility will be incurred in the second fiscal quarter.

The effective tax rate this quarter was 35.4%. This is 70 basis points higher than the prior year quarter. This higher effective tax rate negatively impacted diluted EPS by $0.01 compared with the prior year period. The effective tax rate for the prior year period was favorably impacted by various discrete items, including the research and development tax credit, which did not occur in the first quarter of fiscal 2013. The company estimate the favorable impact to be approximately $0.6 million or $0.01 per diluted share, and it will lower estimated effective tax rate for fiscal 2013 to slightly below 35%. Including the first quarter CapEx spend, the company currently expects to spend approximately $40 million in capital expenditures for fiscal year 2013.